Who is Truth?

Anna is learning several prayers and scripture passages this year in preparation for her First Communion next May. Some she already knows from our evening prayer time—the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be—others she is picking up and memorizing through daily repetition—the Act of Contrition, the Ten Commandments, and the Two Great Commandments (Matthew 22:37-40) among them.

Over the last month, we’ve been focusing on the Apostles Creed. At first she read it from a prayer book of mine, and the first few nights she kept stumbling over one part.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pointless Pilate …

“Pointless Pilate.” Julia and I both chuckled at this, but I can’t blame her. She’s never seen the name “Pontius” before. How would she recognize it.

It was a funny mistake, but it contained a glimpse of truth. Because Pontius Pilate, representative of both the Emperor of Rome and the Ruler of this world really did miss the point.

He was face to face with the Incarnate Word of God, and he asked “What is truth?”

Jesus didn’t answer. Perhaps because Pilate cut him off, or perhaps because he asked the wrong question.

The question poor pointless Pilate should have asked is this.

“Who is Truth?”

Jesus would have answered that question with two words that ring through John’s Gospel.

3 thoughts on “Who is Truth?”

David,
I am impressed with all that your young daughter is learning and memorizing. Excellent point you make about “Who” vs. “what.”
I wonder if Jesus didn’t answer Pilate because He thought it would be pointless …maybe Pilate asked but he wasn’t really interested in the answer…just musing aloud.

Very good. Pointless Pilate….that’s wonderful! I almost wrote a very similar post for FMF this week, for likewise, my first though was the question Pilate asked. I ended up going in a different direction, addressing yet another question that Jesus didn’t answer. Seems our minds work a bit alike. 🙂 Nice to discover you via FMF. Blessings….

That one day, we will all hold hands and D A N C E in heaven, like birds on trees, being moved by the warm magnolia breeze, like purple annuals and yellow perennials growing in the same garden of love.